almond butter

Go nuts at the Pacific Beach Tuesday Farmers' Market! Hopkins AG brings a wide variety of dry roasted almonds, along with 100% pure almond butter- try a smear of  on your sprouted wheat bread from Belen Bakery toast in the morning for a champion's breakfast. Toss slivered almonds in a salad like this; using the beet stems or a bowl of torn watercress from Suzie's Farm, goat cheese feta from Nicolau Farm and roasted yellow beets from Proios Farm. Feeling extra nutty? Grab a bag of gala apples from Lone Oak Ranch and dip in a jar of your favorite flavored PB Peanut Butter! 

Gilbert Quintos Family Farm has fresh picked macadamia nuts by the basket. These seasonal tree nuts have tough shells to crack, but Gilbert opens them up before he loads up the baskets, saving you the trouble. Feeling perplexed about nuts at farmers' markets? Check out a little back-story on these protein-rich treats here.

Stock up on a few pounds and try making macadamia nut butter. Since macadamia nuts are already so buttery, you don't need to add oil and the result is a smooth, delcious flavor you'll want to eat by the spoonful. 

Grab a farm fresh chicken from Descanso Valley Ranch and make a macadamia nut crusted chicken for dinner tonight. Serve a side of steamed long green beans from Rodney Kawano Farm and grab a fresh coconut from Moncai Vegan to sip while you dine. Aloha! 

Get ready to go back to school with the first fresh Gala apples from Smit Orchards at the North Park Thursday Farmers’ Market. Enjoy crisp apple wedges dipped in all natural almond butter from Hopkins Ag, or make a sweet treat by dipping them in orange blossom honey from Meljess Bees.

Make a grilled cheese that’s sure to please with French country bread from Belen Bakery, fresh butter and cheddar cheese from Springhill Cheese Company, and thinly sliced apples - we like to add a handful of arugula from Suzie’s Farm just before we put the sandwich together. Make an awesome apple salad with fresh greens from your favorite farmer, apples, strawberries from Rodney Kawano Farm, honey roasted almonds from Smit Orchards and fresh chevre from Taste Cheese, all tossed with white balsamic from California Olive.

You may need more than an apple a day!

WE'RE NUTS ABOUT ALMONDS  
Pick up California grown raw, roasted, salted and flavored almonds from Smit Orchards and Hopkins AG at the Pacific Beach Tuesday Farmers’ Market.  Toss some in your backpack whether you’re hiking Cowles Mountain or just taking the stairs to work, stash some in your desk drawer for the mid afternoon munchies, keep them on hand for a healthy snack for hungry kids.  

A handful of almonds has almost half the fiber your body needs each day, twenty grams of protein and a healthy dose of monounsaturated fats, the ones that lower levels of harmful cholesterol.  With fantastic flavors like Smit’s wasabi or orange honey and Hopkins’ peppered tomato or Mexican chocolate, there’s a perfect almond for everyone in your family.  

Sprinkle sliced almonds over stir-fried broccoli and mushrooms from Kawano Farms or a bowl of gazpacho from One Fresh Meal.  Go totally nuts and top a dish of almond-based Bitchin Sauce with crunchy crushed almonds - don’t forget celery and carrots from JR Organics for dipping. Spread some of Hopkins AG’s awesome almond butter on a slice of freshly baked Belen Bakery Date Walnut bread. Crunch on!

ALMONDS FOR A HEALTH, HAPPY HEART

We heart almonds, and, by coincidence, almonds are a heart healthy treat.  We’re spotlighting this nut and the farmers and vendors who bring them each Wednesday to the Adams Avenue Farmer’s Market. Did you know that a 1-ounce serving of almonds is an excellent source of vitamin E, magnesium and fiber plus other good stuff like potassium, calcium and iron? They’re also full of good-for-your-heart unsaturated fat. For an afternoon snack try the raw almonds from Smit Orchards mixed with any of their great dried fruits. Both Smit Orchards and Hopkins Ag have fun flavored varieties like sea salt and lime, Mexican chocolate and honey roasted. If you haven’t tried Hopkins Ag almond butter yet, it’s sure to change your idea of the classic PB&J when paired with the raspberry amaretto jam from Really Good Jams. Even the jam’s been punched up with a bit of almond liqueur!